Instinct vs. Reason

Instinct vs. Reason
Throughout the story of The Most Dangerous Game, Rainsford develops his character and changes. The change started when he was being hunted by General Zaroff. In the beginning of the story, Rainsford doesn’t believe animals can feel anything. He doesn’t feel animals can feel fear. Later, he changes his opinions.
At first, Rainsford had laughed at his hunting partner Whitney because Whitney had wondered whether animals had feelings when being hunted. Rainsford disagreed and had said an animal is an animal. Also, Rainsford also felt an animal had no feelings, just dumb instinct. He felt that because it was in his belief than Man was the greatest animal and was the only one who could reason. When he was being hunted by Zaroff, he finally realized the fear of the hunted and it showed him how an animal at bay felt.
Another reason on how Rainsford developed is his reason and instinct. At the start of the story, Rainsford was a reasonable man and used logic. This is displayed when he hears a gunshot. He was in the water treading and remembered that guns would mean men are around and when men were around, there would be food. Instinct would not want him near guns but Rainsford had used logic to solve that conundrum. By the end of the story, after he was hunted, he snuck into Zaroff’s room and killed him. Rainsford had said he was not a killer but his actions now contradict his words. Killing Zaroff was not logical but Rainsford had acted on instinct instead.
So, Rainsford now believes animals do have some sort of feeling and he acts more on instinct than reason. All this change was due to the hunt he had had with General Zaroff. And at the end of the story, Rainsford, for better or worse, is a changed man.